


Achingly Shy

by clearascountryair



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Academy Era, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Meet-Cute, Tutoring, sixteen and achingly shy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-01
Updated: 2017-08-01
Packaged: 2018-12-09 23:35:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11679432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clearascountryair/pseuds/clearascountryair
Summary: When you're a child prodigy, it's bad enough to have your professor recommend you for tutoring.That doesn't mean your nemesis needs to know.





	Achingly Shy

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you, theresalwaysaway, for the amazing AOS Fic Net 2 exchange prompt, "Academy or University AU. Meet cute where they are next to each other in line for tutoring (so embarrassing), but they discover they are experts in what the other needs help with and decide to tutor each other" for Fitzsimmons or Yoyomack. I ended up going with Fitzsimmons because, well, it felt like it fit pretty well. Hope you enjoy!

She was shaking so terribly, she could barely get her key into the door.  

"It's a first draft, Cadet," her professor had said.  "You can revise the next draft and still get an A in the course."

"Not an A," she had responded.  "One hundred percent.  Full marks."

Her professor had smiled kindly.  "That will take work, Dr. Simmons, but it's not impossible.  It might have been easier, however, if you, like nearly all your classmates, took my offer to work with a partner."

"I work better alone."

"As you wish."  And then he had said those horrible, disgusting, terrible eight words filled with the doubt she refused to tolerate:

"You could always go to the tutoring center."

How _dare_ he!

She threw her backpack angrily on her bed.  She was the youngest cadet at the Academy.  She was about to become the youngest SHIELD agent _ever_.  She had two PhDs and had only just turned seventeen, accepted into the Academy at sixteen. She was the best, she had always been the best, and she would always be the best _on her own_.  

She did not need tutoring.

"Someone's awfully cranky for not being a child."  Siofra flung her legs over the side of her own bed and smiled at Jemma.  

Jemma glared.  "I'm not 'cranky,'" she snapped.  "Professor Vaughn suggested I go to the...the tutoring center for the engineering component of my assignment." She whispered "tutoring center" as though it were a dirty word.  

Siofra laughed.  "It's the tutoring center, English.  Not a brothel.”

“It’s all the same.”

Siofra was quiet for a moment before she said, “Well, that’s a lot to unpack.”

Sighing, Jemma sat down on her bed.  “You don’t get it.  You’re…”

“Old?” Siofra supplied.

“I was going to say an adult, but yes.”  She pulled her legs up to her chest.  “What happens next?” she asked.  “What if they send me back to uni?  Or _high school_.”

Siofra scoffed. “It’s the tutoring center at _SHIELD Academy_.   I'm pretty sure every cadet has been there at least once.  Especially anyone stupid enough to attempt Vaughn’s freshmen final alone."

" _He_ hasn't."

"Ah. 'Course _he_ hasn't.  So now you can't."

"Obviously."

Siofra rolled her eyes. "God forbid Leo Fitz do better than Jemma Simmons on something.  What if he does it without tutoring?”

“Exactl--”

“Or you could suck it up.   You don't need to hate him just because he hates you.  You’re the smartest one here, so don’t be stupid and give that up over your bloody pride. Maybe it's not even competition for him. Maybe he's just Scottish."

" _That_ would be stupid."

"I swear to Christ, English.  If you don't friend him, I will.  Gotta have the British Isles represented."

"We haven't got Wales. Anyway, you're Irish.  Shouldn't you resent that?"

Siofra shrugged.  "Probably.  Just go to the tutoring center.  No one will judge you for it.”

Jemma laughed.  “I’m a teenaged super genius.  I get judged for everything.”

“Prove them wrong.  Awe Fitz with you ability to do what’s best for science, regardless of your pride.  And then promise you'll name the first baby Fitzsimmons after me."

"Ha! I think I'd rather die than have a child with that ass.  That might be the only thing we agree on."

"Oh, come off it, Jemma.  It would be a crime against science to not make genius babies with that kid."

Jemma flopped down and pressed her face into her pillow.  "Can you please stop insinuating that I have to have sex with Leopold Fitz?  I've got a boyfriend."

Siofra laughed.  "No, you've got a douchebag who's ten years older than you, probably a pedo, and knows that as long as you're exclusive, you'll probably correct his homework for him."

Jemma threw her pillow at her roommate. "Eff you."

"Wouldn't surprise me if Fitz is secretly amazing in bed."

"The world will never know."

"Yeah, but Jemma, just imagine his--"

"Please!  Stop it."

"Go to tutoring."

"No!"

"Go to the tutoring center and I swear I will never put dirty images of Leopold Fitz in your head again."

Jemma, against her better judgement, sat up. "Bull."

"I'm serious.  Go to the tutoring center and I will end my mission."

"What?  Trying to make me think of him naked?"

"Specifically when you're with Justin."

Jemma’s eyes widened.  “That’s disgusting.  I don’t need tutoring and I _certainly_ don’t need to think of Leo Fitz’s... _anything_.”

And still, twenty minutes later with a hood over her head, Jemma found herself in line at the tutoring center.  Sighing, she pulled out her phone and sent her mother a text.

_Would you stop loving me if I went to the tutoring center?_

The response was immediate.  

_not nearly as much as i would stop loving you if that were a serious question.  love you.  keep kicking american ass. xx mama_

She shoved her phone back into her pocket.  Daddy probably would have been the smarter person to text.  

There were only three people ahead of her go check in.  As long as none of them turned around, she'd be fine.  It was hard enough being at the top of her field as a teenaged girl.  She couldn't imagine if word got out that she needed tutoring. She'd never get taken seriously again. Never have another paper punished or be asked to speak at another conference. She’d be just another fraud.  

Brushing a stupid, frustrated tear from her eye, she became aware of someone staring at her and spun around.  

Leopold Fitz met her gaze with wide eyes.  

Without a moment's hesitation, Jemma turned and ran all the way back to her room.  

"That was fast," Siofra said when Jemma ran in and immediately collapsed against the shut door.

"He was there!    _He._ _Saw._ _Me_!"

Siofra laid back down.  "God have mercy,” she said sarcastically. “Try again tomorrow."

Jemma shook her head.  "I'd rather die."

"I don't doubt it.  But right now, your death doesn't seem imminent.  The real question is would you rather get a B in Vaughn's class?"

Jemma continued shaking her head.  She was ruined and absolutely sure of it.  Leo Fitz had seen her in line for a _tutor_.   _Oh god_ , what if he told people?  Sure, she might be a point ahead of him in all their courses, but _he_ didn’t need extra help.  She burst into tears.  "Siofra, what am I going to do?”

Siofra murmured something that sounded like “Oh, crap,” and moved across the room to guide Jemma to her bed. "I'm serious.  I've never been so mortified in my whole life."

"Okay, I can get that,” Siofra said, and Jemma tried not to feel condescended to.  “I think you’re wrong, but I get that. But you're not asking the right question."

Jemma turned on her side to face Siofra across their room.  "And what would that be?"

"Well, there's not a lot of other stuff around the tutoring center, is there?"

Jemma gasped.  "Do you think Vaughn told him to tutor me?"  Her sobs renewed

"What!  No!  No, no, no.  Christ, Jemma.  It's a _biochemical_ _engineering_ project.  And you had to work alone because Fitz was and god forbid you seem weak.  And _you_ needed help on the engineering part."

"He wasn't in line."

“Well, sometimes people do stupid things when they show up to get tutored and their quote unquote rival is there.” Siofra smiled and shook her head, heading back to her own bed.  "There's always tomorrow."

"Or not."  Jemma sighed and opened her backpack. She could do this on her own.  

"Hey, Jemma?"

"Hm?"

"You think his bare arse is as perky as it looks in his corduroys?"

“Stop it.”

“Come on, Jemma.  It’s not the end of the world.”

“I don’t want to think of Leo Fitz right now, naked or clothed.”

"Just go to the tutoring center for real.  Actually get help.  Maybe then you’ll be more than one point ahead of him."

Jemma glared, but returned the next day to the tutoring center. It wasn't anything to be embarrassed by, she tried to tell herself.  Not really.  Loads of people need tutors.  Even child geniuses.  She ran her fingers up her own neck, drumming lightly on her jaw and grounding herself.  She could do this.

There was no one in line when she got there.  While she knew that she should just got straight to the check in, she couldn't help but pace nervously outside the door.  Even if Fitz wasn’t there, someone could still find out she was.  She’d have to sign her name to get in, show her ID.  

_To hell with it_ , she thought.  She could live with Siofra trying to plant naked images of Leo Fitz in her mind as long as she had her career.  That’s what mattered, wasn’t it?  She’d still be one point ahead and one point was better than disgraced.

She was still battling her desire to leave when someone rounded the corner.

_Of.  Freaking.  Course._

Despite her desire to run or hide or simply vanish from existence, she put on her best smile.  “Oh, hello there!”  She meant it cheerfully, but it sounded terrified.

He simply nodded in response.  The asshole.

In her panic, Jemma couldn't help but exclaim, “Jemma Simmons.  I'm tutoring for biochemistry.”  There couldn't be anything snarky he could say to that.  Hell, she could probably help _him_.  She fixed him with her best stare.

“Right,” Fitz said.  “Leopold Fitz.  Engineering.” He stuck out his hand.  “We know each other.  We’re in Vaughn’s class together.  Weaver’s, too.”

Both of them went red (though neither noticed the other did).

“Right!  Of course! Duh! I'm so foolish.”  Her face hurt from the strain of smiling.

Fitz looked down at his feet.  “So you're...you're here to tutor people in biochem?”

Jemma nodded overenthusiastically.  “And you...you're here for engineering?”

Fitz nodded and pursed his lips together.  “So...are you going in?” He asked, gesturing at the door.

“Are _you_?” God, that sounded idiotic.  

Fitz swallowed.  “Might come back for another shift.”

“Yeah.” Jemma glanced towards the door.  “Yeah, another shift.  I'll see you, then.”  She turned and walked towards the door. She should just got in, walk into the tutoring center and hope it looked like she was working there.  Like she had the project under control.  She curled her hands into fists and released them.  She had to know.  Sighing heavily and turned back to him.

“Vaughn’s project.”

Fitz cocked his head.  “What about it?”

Jemma shifted her waited from one foot to the other.  “How, um, how's it going?”

Fitz hesitated for a moment before saying, “Fine.  Good, great, even.  You?”

“Great!”  Jemma said overenthusiastically.  “Really fantastic.”

“Great.”

“Great.”

They both nodded, simultaneously avoiding and forcing eye contact.  

_Oh, what the heck!_  Jemma sighed.  “Maybe we could compare notes?  Just see if we're approaching it from different directions.”

Perhaps she had only ever seen Fitz tense, but the moment after she said that, his shoulders dropped and, for the first time, he seemed her own age.  

“Yeah,” he said.  “That would probably be good idea.”

Jemma smiled and nodded and couldn't explain why her heart had begun pounding furiously until it burst out of her with a half hysterical, “I can't figure out the engineering, not any of it, and what if I get a B?”

To her shock, Fitz doubled over laughing and immediately tears sprung into her eyes. This was, without a doubt, the most humiliating moment of her life.  

“Fine,” she said in barely more than a whisper.  “You win.”

To hell with tutoring. She just wanted to go back to sleep.  

“Wait!”  

She froze with her hand on the door.  “What do you want from me?”

“Mostly your understanding of biochem.  The bio part, especially.  But the work ethic could be nice.  You're so...studious?”

She turned back to face him but crossed her arms over her chest.  “Of course.   _You_ don't need to study.”

“It's why you're technically top of the class instead of tied with me, probably.  And why you probably never failed literature or history.”

Jemma swallowed.  She had no idea what he was rambling on about.  

Fitz straightened.  “I'll trade you. We can…balance each other out.”

_Oh_.  Jemma nodded.  “Yeah, I mean, Vaughn said it didn't have to be a solo project.”

“Yes!  Exactly!”

But she still needed explicit confirmation. “So we should just--”

“We should work together.”

For a moment, Jemma said nothing and watched as Fitz's face grew progressively red.

“I-I mean,” he stammered.  “I mean that if we’re just going to compare notes anyway--”

“It would be silly to remain in competition.”

“And we’re the top of the class as is…”

“So if we worked together…”

“Aaron Walters would probably cry.”

Jemma laughed.  “He is kind of an asshole.”

“Kind of?” Fitz said, crossing his arms.  “He’s my roommate.”

“Oh dear.”

Fitz nodded.  “You’re with Siofra Neville, right?”

Jemma cocked her head, surprised that he knew that.  “Yeah.”

“Yeah, she’s, like, obsessed with you.  Talks about you all the time.”

Jemma let out an uncomfortable laugh.  “Yeah, uh, yeah, that’s Siofra.”  She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.  “Do you want to go to the library?”

Fitz looked around.  “Don’t you have to tutor?”

Jemma felt all the heat rush to her cheeks and immediately looked at the floor.  “I could just...I could reschedule.  What shift were you planning on working?”

“Same as you, I think.”  He shrugged when she looked up, confused.  “The ‘too condescending to actually teach people’ shift.”

For a moment, Jemma thought to be offended.  But then she just laughed.  “So you’re here because?”

Fitz clapped his hands together and rocked back on his heels.  “We could just go to the library?”

“Fine.  Siofra should still be asleep, anyway.”  She began walking away from the tutoring center.

Fitz paused for a moment before hurrying to walk at her side.  “What’s that got to do with it?”

Once again, Jemma flushed.  “Just...trust me on this, okay?”

 

Less than an hour later, the pair had agreed that they might as well work on Weaver’s assignment together as well.  They were twice as smart together as they were apart and, if Jemma believed in that B.S., she might say that she and Fitz were destined to be the most epic lab partners SHIELD Academy had ever seen.  Watching Fitz explain the engineering component, she couldn’t help but smile to herself.

Together, she had to say, they would be pretty damn magnificent.

 

* * *

 

_Fifteen Years Later…_

It had been four hours and twenty-seven minutes and Jemma still wondered if it was physically possible for her to melt every time Maya smiled.  Unblinkingly, she traced her finger down Maya’s cheek and over her puckered lips and comforted herself with with the knowledge that Fitz was crying too.  She glanced down to where he was holding that impossibly tiny foot and grinned.  

“She’s so perfect,” Jemma whispered.  “So incredibly perfect.”

Fitz kissed the top of her head.  “Just like her mother.”

“She’s got your eyes though.”

“Sure,” Fitz said.  “But she’s got your chin.”

“It’s not a contest, Fitz.”

“I know.  God, just think how clever she’ll be.”  He leaned down past Jemma to kiss the baby’s nose.  “You’re going to be so clever, Maya.  So freaking smart.”

Suddenly, Jemma burst out laughing.  Maya whined at the noise and Fitz clucked his tongue in mock disapproval.  

“It hasn’t even been five hours, Jem, and you’ve already gone and wakened the baby.”

“I’m sorry,” Jemma said, unable to stop laughing.  “But I’ve got to call Siofra.”

Fitz looked at her, confused, still stroking Maya’s leg.  “From the Academy?  Why?”

Jemma bit her lip in half-embarrassment.  “She put in a lot of effort into this,” she said, nodding at Maya.

“Into our baby?”

“Well, into me picturing you naked.  So that we could have a genius baby.”

“Wow.” Fitz looked back and forth for a moment between his wife and daughter.  “Yeah...we’ll send her a thank you note later.  And a request for Maya’s college tuition.”

Jemma leaned up to kiss him.  “Sounds perfect.”


End file.
